


Letters in the Rain

by Bay



Category: Homestuck
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-26
Updated: 2013-05-26
Packaged: 2017-12-13 01:30:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/818369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bay/pseuds/Bay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose takes Kanaya to LOLAR during the newly combined session's lull, the two having a moment to themselves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Letters in the Rain

**Author's Note:**

> Based off [this prompt](http://homesmut.dreamwidth.org/39716.html?thread=43676708#cmt43676708) from homesmut. Thanks to my friends bobandbill for his great betaing and sonjajade for helpful suggestions on the violin playing bits!

Kanaya first learned that Rose played the violin back when they were in the meteor. As she was walking through the halls alone, she heard music coming from one of the meteor’s libraries. Curious, she headed there and stopped once inside.

Rose sat on the table and began to play, the butt of the violin resting between the chin and shoulder. The first time Kanaya listened it started off as a lighthearted adagio. Now the notes grew sharper and swifter when Rose hit the climax, but the overall tone remained the same. There was that determined look on Rose’s face she recognized when they were gathering information for the upcoming confrontation. It wasn’t long until she slowed the music once more to the song’s coda and finished. A grin pulled onto Kanaya’s lips.

“That’s very lovely.”

Rose gasped and flinched. Her face then softened.

“Were you here the whole performance?” she asked, setting the violin and bow down beside her.

“Only halfway through, but I heard you playing while on a leisurely stroll. Is this a longtime hobby of yours?”

Rose nodded. “I enjoy creating music as much as creating stories. This particular piece, though, is not for relaxation. Back when I was in the Land of Light and Rain, my guide, Jaspers, wanted me to go on this quest by learning to play the rain.”

Confused, Kanaya arched an eyebrow. “Play the rain?”

“I was puzzled as you at first, but I eventually figured out he wanted me to produce the musical analogue of a genetic code. That should then bring back life to my planet.”

“Do you have the whole song down by heart already?” Thinking back to Rose’s performance, she believed it had some similarities to a shower outside in the morning. The mention of a genetic code threw her off slightly, but she assumed everything would make sense in due time.

Rose dropped her gaze at Kanaya and lowered her head, closing her eyes tight. “I can’t say for certain unless we visit my planet, which I’m sure Jade has with her at this time.” She grew quiet a brief moment and then said, “Since I promised Jaspers I would consider the quest seriously, I figure the long stay in the meteor is a great opportunity to do that.”

Kanaya offered her friend a small smile. “There’s still more time for practice. I’m sure you’ll have the song memorized once we meet up your friends.”

A tiny smile played around Rose’s lips. “I appreciate that very much. I think I’ll indulgence myself into troll romances right now.”

“I hope you didn’t steal one of Karkat’s novels again.” Chuckling, Kanaya couldn’t help but be amused of that thought.

“No, I found several in one of the libraries. The narrative style left little to be desired, but I still enjoy the tension going on with the characters.”

After giving Rose a nod, Kanaya left the room to resume her walking. She wouldn’t mind hearing her play the violin more often.

+++

When she got a chance to view her surroundings, Kanaya thought the planet looked dead. There were many mounds and red standing stones that stretched across the land. Purple gas filled the whole sky, flashing like electrical sparks. John explained how he was bored because there was nothing much to do and she, not able to imagine living here, couldn’t help but agree.

After John led everyone to the battleship, they went inside a room with a large television and several cushions where Rose took a nap in. She was glad Rose was sleeping off her drunkenness as she wasn’t in any state for clear focus. The rest of the group was talking about the events that happened earlier.

“I can’t fucking believe you lost sight of Jade, John!” Karkat glared over his shoulder at him.

“Again, she left while I was asleep and in a dreambubble! I didn’t think she would go get our parents on her own.”

“Consider yourself lucky, then,” Terezi told John. “You would’ve gone through the same fate as her. With my Seer of Mind powers, I know that’s the case.”

A stunned look on his face, John’s eyes widened. He then rubbed the back of his head in a sheepish manner. “I don’t know how I should feel about that.”

“If we don’t know where Jade, my bro, and his friends are, how we’ll be able to find them?” Dave asked.

“Rose can help us with that, but since she’s taking a nap, we’re pretty much goddamn stuck,” Karkat said as he folded his arms against his chest.

Kanaya felt her chest tighten. She understood how anxious Rose was over the huge battle and felt bad being angry at her earlier, but didn’t like how much she resorted to alcohol to calm her nerves. This wasn’t the Rose she fell in love with. She missed her intellect, her effusive wording, and her being _healthy_. Glancing over at her, Kanaya hoped she would feel better after some rest. Eventually everyone decided to wait for Rose to wake up from her sleep. Karkat was right that they needed her help regarding finding the humans’ guardians.

Around another three hours passed by. John, Dave and Terezi played cards while Karkat read one of his troll romance novels and the Mayor drunk bottles of soda. Kanaya also tried to distract herself by reading, but her mind instead kept drifting over Rose. Her heart skipped a beat when she suddenly heard a groan.

“Rose?”

Turning around, she saw Rose half-raising herself from the cushions, her hand resting on her forehead. Everybody in the ship didn’t hesitate to rush by her side.

“Where are we?” Rose asked in a dazed voice, blinking.

Kanaya answered, “In the Land of Mounds and Xeon, at Jade’s battleship. Unfortunately, she isn’t here right now.”

Rose didn’t react at the start, but soon realization lit up her face. “She’s being controlled by the Condesce, and so is Jane.”

John gave Rose a shocked look. “Wait, you’re telling me Nana’s younger self is in trouble too?”

“My mom and Jake are held captive while Dirk is floating in the Furthest Ring.” By the sound of Rose’s voice, Kanaya could tell she was fairly upset bringing that up.

“Shit man,” Dave said. “This is not cool at all.”

John gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. He then said, “We have to save them now!”

“And go without some course of action?” Karkat yelled. “We’ll be squashed if we head straight to the Condesce recklessly! Not only that, there’s still the problem of facing Lord English and Jack Noir!”

A long silence hung around the room. Glimpsing at everyone, Kanaya was sure everyone was taking a moment to ponder over the situation they faced now. She too was still processing on the recent revelations. Terezi was the first to speak.

“Karkat’s right. We need to come up with a plan to go against our foes. I can let you guys know the outcomes on all of our suggestions.”

“For certain we do need Jade,” Rose said, “as she has the battlefield and the Genesis Frog. She and the others shall be rescued in due time.” She winced and rubbed her head. “However, we can’t proceed to battle for a while. We have to wait until Viceroy names all of our reinforcements.”

“Reinforcements? You mean the bunch of skeletons we saw earlier?” Dave asked, sounding dubious.

“Yes, those ones. Besides that, I need to go back to my planet and finish an important quest. Kanaya, you’re coming with me.”

Not expecting Rose to say that, Kanaya’s eyes grew wide. “Why me?” she asked.

“There are a few issues I want to converse with you in private. Also I might need your help on this specific task.”

Kanaya considered Rose’s request a brief moment. She assumed Rose wanted to speak to her concerning what occurred between them back at the meteor, which she was secretly pleased of—they do need another talk about that particular subject. She also was curious how Rose’s planet was like and already figured out what her mateship meant by quest. Having made a decision, she gave a single nod.

“I’m fine with accompanying you to your planet.”

Rose smiled a little, as if grateful. “That satisfies me very much.”

“The rest of us can discuss sweet strategies while you guys are away,” Dave said and gave a thumbs up.

“If you need some way to go to your planet, Rose, I think Nana and Jaspers are still outside exploring the ship,” John said.

“I already plan to meet with Jaspers, but nonetheless thanks for informing me. We best should be on our way now, Kanaya.”

Immediately Rose stood up and grabbed Kanaya’s wrist. They hurried out the room together, Rose leading the way.

+++

 

It took a short time for them to reach the top deck of the ship. Kanaya could get a clearer view outside, the hills and stones much more visible now. Even though she still didn’t think highly of the planet, seeing it like this was breathtaking in an unusual way.

She and Rose then spotted a cat-like ghost floating nearby.

“Jaspers! Jaspers!” Rose shouted.

Having caught his attention, Jaspers spun around and grinned. He flew towards her. “Rose! It’s so great to see you.”

Rose smiled back. “Same here.”

Kanaya watched as Jaspers rubbed his cheeks against Rose’s face and purred, Rose patting tenderly on his forehead. She wasn’t sure how their relationship was like, but could see they cared for one another. Soon he stopped to back away.

“My, it’s been three years the last time we talked,” Jaspers said in a wholehearted voice. “I hope all is well with you.”

“I’ve hit some unexpected turns, but I still manage.”

“I see, purr purr.” Looking at Kanaya in great interest, he asked her, “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”

“Yes, I was about to.” Rose gestured her hand towards her and said, “Let me introduce you to my dearest love, Kanaya.”

Kanaya blushed. This was the first time she introduced her that way since they were together. It was heartwarming, to say the least. She too considered Rose her dearest love.

“Oh, wonderful! It’s nice to meet you, then, Kanaya.” He extended a hand, or tentacle to be exact, to Kanaya, which she accepted. “How did the both of you meet?”

“Long story short, we communicated through the internet for some time. After the Scratch, we met face to face and got to know one another in a deeper level.”

Jaspers looked very pleased. “Meow. Sounds great!”

“Sorry to cut this reunion short, but I have a favor to ask you,” Rose said.

“Meow?” Jaspers titled his head in curiosity.

“I need to go back to my planet and accomplish the task of playing the rain. Since Jade is absent at the moment, I was wondering if you can take us there.”

“Why certainly! Your witch friend left all the planets at the control tower, but I can easily send the both of you there, no problem.”

“That would be appreciated.”

“Purr purr purrr. I wish you luck on completing your quest, Rose! And Kanaya, I hope we can have a nice conversation together once this whole battle is dealt with.”

Smiling, Kanaya said, “I would like that.”

She and Rose waited as Jaspers prepared to send them to Rose’s planet. He took on a bright glow and Kanaya felt her body heating up. Just then, Jaspers meowed loudly as he raised his arms up, and suddenly she was engulfed in white light.

+++

Compared to The Land of Mound and Xenon, Rose’s planet was much livelier. In front of Kanaya was an endless ocean swirled in many colors. Yellow clouds scattered all over the clear sky with rain falling. Beautiful would be understatement. Kanaya stood alongside with Rose and her sprite at an island, all three taking in the scenery.

“I’ll be exploring nearby while you two prepare for the quest,” Jaspers said. “Once that’s completed, I can take us back to the ship.”

“Thanks once more, Jaspers.” Rose smiled at him.

The sprite meowed contentedly before leaving the two ladies alone. Kanaya listened to the waves crashing at the shore. Hearing it sounded very peaceful to her.

“This is a charming planet of yours,” she said while looking at Rose over her shoulder.

“That’s one way to put it.” The smile on Rose’s face faded and she sighed. “I want to apologize for my less than stellar behavior prior to Jade’s sudden appearance. I broke my promise to you and you have every right to be outraged with me.”

Kanaya already anticipated Rose to say sorry, but her heart still sank. Now that some time had passed by, she was a lot calmer now.

“Does that mean you’ll seek help for this particular compulsion of yours?”

“Yes, after we’re not preoccupied with needing to win this game.”

“As much as I wish you didn’t indulge yourself in drinking toxin beverages, I forgive you.”

That didn’t change Rose’s guilty expression. “I still feel I must take responsibility, however. If I hadn’t let my fretfulness took over me, I could’ve foreseen when Mom and her friends were in trouble.”

“Don’t blame yourself for this! Jade most likely tried to help but didn’t succeed, and it isn’t her fault either.” Kanaya stopped a brief moment to consider what she wanted to say next. “You and Terezi mentioned this isn’t the right time to face our foes yet. This lull is the perfect opportunity to make ourselves ready and think up of something.”

To comfort Rose, Kanaya stepped closer to her, hands resting on Rose’s shoulders, and pressed their lips together for a kiss. She could still taste the alcohol on her, but brushed that thought off. They soon took a step back from one another, Rose giving a small frown.

“It was silly of me to feel ashamed over events I couldn’t control.”

“I’m worried about everything not coming in our favor either, but all of us should hold up perfectly fine.”

During their long silence, Rose’s face grew serious again. Kanaya wondered if she thought long and hard over something.

“Do you recall a while back one of my quests in this planet is to play the rain?” Rose finally asked.

She nodded. “I do, yes. That was when I caught you practicing your violin and enjoyed your performance.”

“I wasn’t able to achieve that back then because my friends and I weren’t going to win our session. Sometimes I get curious what would’ve happened if I didn’t become so reckless.”

Lowering her gaze onto the white sand, Kanaya frowned. Even though back then she wanted Rose to stop destroying her planet, the thought of that never crossed her mind. Would things be different if her mateship hadn’t been swayed by the gods (or so Rose proclaimed)? There was no way to tell now.

“Perhaps you weren’t supposed to do your quest until much later,” she said when she looked back at Rose.

“That’s one of the points I thought made sense. Either way, this objective is not only meant as a way to win the game but also for my own benefit.”

Humming in understanding, Kanaya believed that was highly the case. She assumed Rose’s quest would, one way or another, had her develop into her role as the Seer of Light more.

“You feel up to the task now?” she asked.

Rose smiled at her, the kind of smile that said she wasn’t sure of that herself but would do it, anyhow. “There’s only one way to find out.”

Kanaya watched Rose pull out her violin, placing it on her shoulder, then used the bow to pull the notes from the strings. Like before, the song started out in an upbeat melody and as she played further, beams of colorful light flickered in concert with the music. Kanaya’s mouth opened in amazement. She wanted to tell Rose how excited she was to experience this but didn’t want to disturb her.

When Rose had the notes into a brisk tempo, there were more yellow clouds forming. Luckily the clouds didn’t hit their island yet as Kanaya was certain the water would hinder Rose’s performance. She then noticed two shimmering letters appeared in the sky.

_ME_

Glimpsing at Rose swaying to the music, Kanaya could tell she was enjoying herself. That made her smile. She looked back at the sky to see two more letters flared up.

_MEOW_

Just as Rose hit the coda, fish suddenly jumped out of the ocean before dropping back down and making loud splashes. A surprised gasped escaped from Kanaya. At that instant, Rose played the last notes perfectly, just as she had practiced.

Staring back at the sky, Kanaya said, “Rose, is that…”

“The genetic code I referenced before?” Rose interrupted, a proud smile tugging at her lips. “Then yes, you’re correct on that.”

“That means you finally played the rain! You accomplished your quest!”

They laughed together in excitement before embracing one another, sharing a slow kiss. Kanaya loved how soft Rose was against her and her smooth lips. A yellow cloud floated by, rainfall pouring down on them. When Rose placed her hands on Kanaya’s back, she looped her arms around Rose’s neck and slid her fingers onto her soaked hair, which felt slick and silky. Kanaya was overjoyed having the old Rose back, praying to herself she stay that way from now on. Their lips parting, she caressed Rose’s wet cheek with one hand.

“I believe we must head back to our companions to find out if they devised any plans for the rescue mission,” Kanaya said. “And also get ourselves into dryer clothes.”

“I agree. Jaspers should be coming to us fairly soon after he finishes eating the fish somewhere.”

Kanaya chuckled. “I’m certain he’s very satisfied with you, nonetheless. In the meantime, shall we marvel at the fish together?”

Rose responded by nodding. They held hands while turning around to look at the ocean. More fish shot out of the water like fireworks and the lights continued to flash. Kanaya was unsure of the upcoming obstacle ahead of them, but she and Rose, along with their friends, would go through it together and that was all she could ask for.


End file.
